The Latest Buzz About Bourbon Whiskey

Posts Tagged new

Jim Beam is set to deliver a new product called Devil’s Cut in May, 2011. ‘Devil’s Cut’ is Beam’s trademarked term for whiskey that is still “trapped within the wood” after dumping. In other words, the dregs. We aren’t sure of the exact process Beam is using to retrieve the dregs from the wood, but it has been confirmed by Fred Noe that it some form of barrel sweating. Beam officially said this about its process: “Through a unique, proprietary process, we extract this formerly lost liquid from deep inside the barrel wood and put it back into our special Bourbon. The resulting liquid is deep in color, aroma and character with robust notes of wood and vanilla.”

There is no age statement on the bottle, but Fred Noe confirmed that the base is 6 year old Jim Beam, but the flavor is supposedly very different. We have heard it tastes like Beam, but has more oak and a longer finish. Noe says, “pulling more [bourbon] out of the wood is the key to this product”. It will come in at 90 proof and the retail price will be about $24 for a 750/ml bottle. We are glad to see the innovation and looking forward to something new. Let us know what you think about it if you have been fortunate enough to get a taste.

FRANKFORT, Franklin County, Ky (Feb. 22, 2011) – Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr. will yet again leave his indelible mark on the whiskey industry. The man who introduced the first climate controlled aging warehouses, used a patented sour mash technique, and fought for the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897 will have a line of premium whiskeys bearing his name. Buffalo Trace Distillery has recreated his traditional sour mash and produced a limited edition, one-time offering of Colonel E. H. Taylor Jr. Old Fashioned Sour Mash Bourbon Whiskey.

This faithfully reproduced bourbon was carefully aged for nine years and “Bottled in Bond” at 100 proof. The sour mashing technique for this small batch bourbon was derived from a meeting several years ago with some Buffalo Trace Distillery retirees who recounted a method for making old fashioned sour mash whiskey. The process replicated the way in which E.H. Taylor, Jr. made sour mash back in his day.

So in 2002 Buffalo Trace Distillery set to work making bourbon using Taylor’s original souring method. The end result was a bourbon delivering a character and body rarely found in whiskeys today. Taylor, a name synonymous with quality whiskey making, might have even said this whisky is “of Topmost Class.”

“Taylor was a true pioneer of the whiskey industry over a century ago,” said Mark Brown, president of Buffalo Trace Distillery. “We believe this whiskey is a tribute to him.” Taylor was the great-nephew of President Zachary Taylor, mayor of Frankfort, state representative to the Kentucky General Assembly and a member of the State Senate. In 1870 he first purchased the distillery and took on the daunting task of modernization. He later named the distillery O.F.C. and continued to invest large sums of money to make it an industry leader. Taylor over-extended himself financially in an effort to use the most modern equipment to make the finest bourbon whiskey available. Throughout his career, Taylor was responsible for the development of seven different distilleries in the area and is widely considered one of the founding fathers of the bourbon industry.

This Old Fashioned Sour Mash Bourbon is the first of several new E.H. Taylor, Jr. whiskeys to be released over the next few years. “All of the Taylor whiskeys will be distinctive. Most will be very limited,” said Kris Comstock, brand manager. Each offering will showcase a vintage label and canister, reminiscent of Taylor’s bottles nearly one hundred years ago. “We designed the current bottle to replicate antique bottles made by Taylor back in 1913,” adds Comstock. Each bottle will be packaged in a canister, much like something Taylor used during his day. Retail price for the E.H. Taylor Jr. Old Fashioned Sour Mash Bourbon will be available for around $70 per 750ml bottle.

A splash of bourbon whiskey makes food taste better. Kentucky cooks have known this for a long time, and with the increasing popularity of bourbon, a new generation of food lovers have discovered many uses for this versatile spirit in the kitchen. With this in mind, veteran food writer and cookbook author David Dominé has published a collection of original recipes that will help readers enjoy bourbon’s distinctive flavors in dishes from crumpets and cakes, to dressings and dumplings, and pilafs and purées.

Not only does does Dominé entertain his readers with interesting tidbits about this distinctive American spirit, he discusses subtle differences in the bourbons used in this, the first-ever collection of recipes designed to showcase a wide variety of brands while promoting tourism at Kentucky’s distilleries.

In addition to sights along the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, this “coffee table” style cookbook features stunning color photographs of each of the 70 food dishes. The author also includes brief histories of distilleries, notes from the master distillers and explanations for such terms as single barrel, small batches and bottled-in-bond.

Shrimp and Corn Hushpuppies, Bourbon Butternut Squash Soup, Kentucky Derby Salad, and Trout Gratin are just a few of the recipes included. Dominé also prepares whiskey-laced originals such as Bourbon Battered Fish with Pumpkin Seeds and Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes. The decadent Bourbon Ball Torte, a four-layer, chocolate concoction filled with rich butter cream, whiskey and pecans and coated in smooth chocolate ganache, is topped with one of the Bluegrass State’s most famous confections, the bourbon ball! Whether it is simmered in soups, drizzled in dressings or baked into breads, bourbon is sure to become a staple in your pantry after reading Splash of Bourbon, Kentucky’s Spirit.

Dominé will be signing his new book in many Kentucky bookstores throughout April. Check with your local bookstore for more information.

The rumors about the new Maker’s Mark bourbon have been flying for some time now. Bill Samuels has finally addressed the matter in the latest news to Ambassadors and Kevin Smith posted proof info and tasting notes to the Maker’s Mark Blog. See the letter and posts below:

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Dear Ambassador,

Some of you may have heard the rumor that Kevin Smith, Master Distiller for Maker’s Mark, has been working on a secret project here at the distillery. You heard right.

After years of prodding from Maker’s Mark brand friends, bourbon lovers, taste-makers and, yes, even you Ambassadors, Kevin and I looked at each other and said, “Well, let’s see what we can do.”

Make no mistake, we weren’t interested in finding which barrel held at the right light on the proper floor of a special warehouse could be packaged and shipped to stores nationwide. What we were trying to do was go after a specific taste. We had very narrow parameters and went after this new idea the way my dad did when he burned the old Samuels’ family mash bill and created Maker’s Mark.

Almost a year and a half later, Kevin comes back to me and says he thinks he’s done it.

Boy, has he ever. Totally amazing new stuff. I mean wow. WOW!

The first step is to get blow back from the bourbon opinionaters, journalists, spirits bloggers, whisky club organizers and, yes, from our Ambassadors. Think of this as either a gut-check or, more bluntly as a disaster check.

Here’s where our taste-making Ambassadors come in. You have already received your invite to Thoroughbreds and Redheads weekend, April 9 and 10. I want you to know that we’ll be sampling our new product at the distillery for the first time on April 10, Ambassador Homecoming Day. Even if you decide not to spend the whole weekend with us, we hope you’ll join us for this momentous occasion.

Cheers!
Bill

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Dear Friends,

I am very excited to let everyone in on a little secret. We have been experimenting with a few things down here at the distillery, and we think we have stumbled onto a bourbon expression worth telling you about. The flavor is incredible. It has an intense, sweet, oaky toast aroma and, at 94 proof, it is unbelievably smooth.

Our new baby is a real revolution, with no alcohol nose or taste, and the big, bold flavors come through without a bitter aftertaste. Imagine oak-sweet vanillas, creamy flavors and a long and luscious texture that coats the front of the tongue. Let me say it this way: the taste is pleasingly intense!

Brad Boswell, President of Independent Stave, and I collaborated to create a process that would marry the flavor of Maker’s Mark with the unique flavors found when oak is heated sizzling hot, blistering the wood on the outside, while locking in the flavor in the middle.

It’s really something folks. I’ve been working on this for a year and a half, and it absolutely defies description. I guess that’s why we’re having such a hard time figuring out what to call it.

HYE — This town is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it dot on the map between Fredericksburg and Johnson City. But in a few years’ time, it could be known to spirit lovers as the birthplace of Texas bourbon.

For the past 19 months, Dan Garrison has been distilling the state’s first bourbon from a mix of organic corn, malt and soft red winter wheat. More than 150 filled and sealed barrels of what will be bottled as Garrison Brothers Distillery Bourbon are aging on his 68-acre lot, a couple of miles off U.S. 290.

At this point, no signs mark the place, but those who find their way to the plant will more than likely encounter Garrison there, working with his staff of two to get as much alcohol in barrels as they can.

By law, bourbon must be aged for at least two years before it can be bottled and labeled bourbon. It must also be made from at least 51 percent corn and aged in newly charred oak barrels. Other rules govern the proof at which it is distilled and bottled, but the most important factor to the consumer is nothing can be added to it except water. In other words, no dyes giving it the right caramel color or flavor additives to achieve the right balance.

Through the years, bourbon has been largely distilled in Kentucky, where such powerhouses as Maker’s Mark, Booker’s, Knob Creek and Woodford Reserve are crafted.

Garrison hopes to place his bourbon alongside those greats, though he doesn’t expect to have his first bottles for sale until his “fingers-crossed launch date” of 2011.

“You have to have a lot of patience to get into the bourbon business,” he says.

You also have to have a lot of passion, which Garrison has in abundance. As he works his way through the plant, complex chemical processes become lucid, at least for a moment, as he describes everything from the various waters he uses (softened water for boiling, rainwater for bottling, reverse osmosis water for fining, raw water for flavor) to the cooking of the corn and barley malt, the actions of barley enzymes and yeasts, and the temperatures and proofs that must be marked as the steam goes through the still.

What is important to remember is that Garrison uses Yellow Dent corn, which has “the highest fermentable sugar content” of any corn on the market, he says. Sweetness counts in bourbon, which is known for its caramel and butterscotch flavors as well as its fruitiness.

Garrison’s current formula is to use 74 percent corn, mixed with 15 percent soft red winter wheat and the rest malt.

Garrison went into making spirits after frustrating experiences in the tech industry. He credits his wife with the decision: “My wife said, ‘You drink so much of it, maybe you should make bourbon.'”

Getting the distillery launched hasn’t been easy. Though Garrison visited Kentucky and met with master distillers like David Pickerell from Maker’s Mark, it took 60 or so attempts to get the recipe right. But once he discovered when to add the malted barley, the process became easier.

The biggest blow was that he split with his original partner in a bitter breakup. He’s borrowed from family and friends to keep going. And he credits his father and brother, who “kicked me in the butt and told me not to feel so sorry for myself,” he says.

He repaid their faith by naming the distillery after the family.

Though the first bottles have yet to be bottled, Garrison has attracted the attention of devoted bourbon fans from across the country, many of whom have wanted to see the plant where Texas’ first bourbon is being distilled, even if they can’t have a sample.

“All of a sudden, people started flocking here,” he says. “I get five or six visitors a week.” For a private tour of the distillery, call (512) 302-0608.

Red Stagby Jim Beam™ is a new innovation from Jim Beam. Through a unique, artisanal infusion process, natural black cherry flavors are slowly and carefully infused into fine, four-year-old Jim Beam Bourbon. The tasting notes are distinctively fruity, without disguising the familiar, rich nose of Jim Beam Bourbon. The corn sweetness and mellow oak taste of Red Stag is accented by a hint of black cherry for smoothness and balance.

Red Stagby Jim Beam™ will launch in June 2009. The 80-proof Red Stag has a suggested retail price of $17.99, which will vary by market, and will be available in 50ml, 750ml and 1L packaging. Details of in-market activation and specific programming will be announced early next month.